Suddenly I'm All Alone
by StarPockets
Summary: After running into each other while separated from their respective groups, Katara and Zuko reluctantly fake a marriage to gain entry into Ba Sing Se. With no shortage of friends and enemies searching for them, they must rely on each other.
1. Prologue

**Hey all! As I said at the end of This Isn't Real, I'm working on a new story and here it is! It takes place during Season 2 and pretty much branches off after the events of Return to Omashu. This is just the prologue - the actual chapters will be much longer. We are diving in head first here, but don't worry, all will be explained in time ;) I hope that you enjoy this one, and please let me know what you think! :)**

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><p>Katara shuffled in her half asleep state. She pulled the covers over herself and tried as best she could to get comfortable. She was curled up on her side, facing the wall the bed was pushed up against. She kept her eyes closed and relaxed her breathing. Within a minute, she began to fall asleep again.<p>

That is, until she felt the unfamiliar jab of someone's leg in her back. _What in the world?_

Her eyes shot open as she realized exactly what, no, _who_ that was. Feeling her heart speed up, she sat straight up in bed and looked to her left. All suspicions and fears were confirmed, he was indeed beside her.

Zuko.

He was still sound asleep, but that didn't stop Katara from shaking him. Somehow, she contained the scream that was threatening to rise from her lungs. Why was he in the exact place he wasn't supposed to be? All the relaxation she'd had moments before was gone and replaced with... well, it was replaced with the fact that Zuko was sleeping beside her – so peacefully like nothing was wrong. Like this was a completely ordinary occurrence! Which it most certainly was not.

She shook him more forcefully, biting her lip in anger. Finally he began to stir.

"What...?" he mumbled as his eyes lazily opened. Upon noticing her, they widened with the same fear and shock that Katara's held. "What?" This time the word was much more sharp as he realized the situation he was in. Not good.

"My thoughts exactly," Katara replied, through gritted teeth. "What are you doing? What did _we_ do? Get out of the bed, Zuko!"

He quickly obliged, scrambling down to the floor. Katara breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing he was still wearing the same clothes as he had been the night before. "I don't know how that happened," he defended himself, holding his hands up. His face was still riddled with fear and confusion.

Katara held her head in her hands. She didn't know either – it would have been so much easier to blame Zuko than to think that maybe, just maybe it had been an accident. After all, was it really so bad? It wasn't like they had _done_ anything, they were both still completely dressed. No, this had to be the work of the plum wine they'd had at the celebration the night before...

Still, _never_ again.

"It was just the wine," Katara said shakily, looking down at him. He looked terrified, sitting there on the wooden floor. Briefly she wondered if he really feared her that much. He hadn't acted like it in the past. Then again, in the past he'd had a ship and an army. Now he had nothing. In fact, the only thing they had was each other and their false identities. Even if he tried firebending in this place it probably wouldn't end very well. "We had too much wine and we were too tired to think straight," she finished, eyeing him.

Zuko nodded, not taking his eyes off her. Even though Katara had calmed herself, he was still worried she was going to lash out at any second. "Too much wine," he confirmed, even though he wasn't so sure he believed that.

Frankly, neither did Katara, but there was no way she was going to admit that to him, or even to herself.

She sighed and got up off the bed. "Look, I'm already awake so let's just get on with the day and forget this happened."

Zuko watched as she exited the small bedroom. Forget it happened? That was unlikely. If anything, he was going to constantly remind himself about it to make sure that it never happened again. To make sure he never got that kind of look from Katara again. He shuddered. No, he would definitely never forget that. If looks could kill, he would have been dead before he'd even woken up.

Sighing, he stood up and followed Katara. So much for all the progress they'd been making.


	2. Synonyms For Separation

**Thank you all for your feedback on this story so far! It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside :) I'm glad that it was intriguing! As promised things will be explained further, and now we'll see the beginnings of that. Reviews are always appreciated! And now, without further ado...**

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><p><strong>Chapter One: Synonyms For Separation<strong>

_Four weeks earlier..._

Katara ran as fast as she could. She ran through the thick forest and through puddles, not bothering to bend the water off of her drenched shoes. She kept running and running until her lungs began to burn. She was out of breath and sweat was dripping off her forehead, but she kept going.

All she wanted, no, _needed_, was to lose them. Katara was a powerful waterbender, a master even. But even she would not have been able to take multiple Fire Nation soldiers at once. She still didn't know how she'd managed to get away. She supposed she had her brother's quick thinking to thank for that.

Her heart ached as she thought of Sokka and Aang. What was going to happen to them? Were they going to be safe? Were they going to get away? Were they going to be captured by the Fire Nation with no hope of escaping?

Katara swallowed as she asked herself questions she wasn't quite sure she wanted the answers to. She forced down the lumps that were rising in her throat and finally stopped in front of a larger body of water. Still breathing heavily, she peered down, staring at her reflection.

Her clothes were torn. Her hair was messy. Her eyes were tired and had dark circles underneath them. She felt like she was going to be sick. Yet, she still forced herself to smile. It wasn't a big smile, just the smallest her face would allow. Perhaps she needed the reassurance. She needed the hope. The hope that everything was going to be okay, and she wasn't going to be separated from everyone she loved for long.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Reaching downward, she cupped a handful of water and rubbed it over her face. The cool feeling of her element soothed her, and cleansed a small amount of her worries. Her mind became a little clearer. Her mind drifted back to earlier in the day...

_They were surrounded. Having just left Omashu, the Fire Nation armies were not quick in letting them escape so easily._

_Appa roared in pain as a flaming projectile struck him in the side. They were going down, fast. The water she had in her pouch would do little the fend off their attackers. Instead she used it to begin healing the bison's wound. Faintly, she could hear Sokka yelling about something or other. Aang's voice was in her other ear, trying as usual to stay positive. She tried to tune them out to better concentrate on the last of the water at her fingertips._

Katara kept her head in her hands as she remembered the events of only a few hours ago. If they had just been near more water, she would have been able to do something. She wouldn't be separated from Sokka and Aang. They would all be together, and they would all be okay. Now they were left without a healer, and she was left without her brother and best friend.

She sighed to herself. Aang and Sokka would come looking for her eventually, right? She had no way of knowing where they were or what had happened to them. She squeezed her eyes shut as she willed herself not to cry. Over and over again she drifted in between feeling like everything was going to be okay, and the exact opposite. As soon as she would convince herself one way, something would creep up and remind her that, no, there was another possible outcome.

She knew she had to keep moving. Sokka's voice rang clearly inside her head.

"_Katara, go!" he shouted seconds after he tossed his boomerang. "We'll fend them off!"_

_She shook her head. There was no way she was leaving them. They were supposed to stick together! Separating her family was exactly what the Fire Nation wanted. "No! I'm not leaving you guys!"_

"_Go, Katara!" Sokka shouted with an air of authority he so rarely used. "We'll catch up with you eventually! Remember the separation plan!"_

"_Sokka-" she started, not wanting to say goodbye to her brother this way. First her mother was killed, then her father went off to fight in the war, now Sokka too? And Aang?_

"_We can't hold them off for long, GO!" he screamed and Katara ran away without daring to look back._

It was tiring. She missed them so much already. She scolded herself for letting this happen, even though she knew it wasn't her fault. It was no one's fault, really. No one except for the Fire Nation, anyway. But they were usually the ones behind her constant suffering.

She needed to get her bearings in order. Not long after she, Sokka and Aang had started travelling together the group had formed a separation plan. A place to meet in the event that they were split up for whatever reason. Usually the plan was just to continue on to wherever the group was headed.

In this case, it was Ba Sing Se.

Knowing she needed to keep moving, Katara quickly finished washing her face, refilled her waterbending pouch and stood up. She had no idea how to get to where she was going, but she figured that as long as she kept on some sort of path, she'd wind up there eventually. Hopefully she would even run into Sokka and Aang on the way.

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><p>The only sound that Zuko could hear was the ostrich horse's feet hitting the ground.<p>

He'd left his uncle, stating that they no longer had anything to gain by travelling together. Zuko was sure he needed to find his own way – his uncle had force fed him that wisdom long enough. However there came a time when he could no longer deal with the constant wisdom, and where he needed to be off on his own to find himself.

Though he tried his best to appear as though he knew what he was doing, he was dreadfully lost. He had no idea where he was going or how to get there. What was he going to do now that he was on the run from the Fire Nation? He couldn't even continue his search for the Avatar. There was no point, he wouldn't be welcomed home no matter what he did anymore. He had no hope left for things to return to the way they once were, and definitely no path to get there.

Zuko wasn't sure where his uncle had gone, but he knew he would be content wherever he was. In a way, Zuko admired that quality. He, on the other hand, was always so unsure of himself. He lacked the confidence to know if he was doing the right thing or not. Often what he thought was right was not at all. His uncle had tried his best to teach him, but Zuko was far too stubborn. He needed to find his own way, even if he wasn't quite sure how to go about doing that.

He grew more and more frustrated with the situation as the ostrich horse trudged along. If he had only thought his plans through, he would have succeeded in capturing the Avatar and been welcomed home with open arms. Or at the very least allowed back home without being labelled as a fugitive.

Damn Azula always had to show him up and ruin everything.

Though as much as he wanted to, Zuko knew he couldn't lay all the blame on his sister. For once, everything that was wrong in his life was hardly her fault. Perhaps it was all his fault for being so soft. If he had been more like Azula, he never would have been banished in the first place. He would still have his father's respect, he would still have his honor.

He would still have a _home_.

Now, he had nothing. Nothing except a small bag of gold pieces and the animal he'd stolen from a family who had only shown him compassion. Zuko could hardly recognize the person he was anymore.

Maybe travelling without his uncle hadn't been the best idea. He found himself missing the constant guidance. As annoying as it was, it had also been oddly comforting. Especially at silent times like these were he was so unsatisfied with himself. Somehow, his uncle always knew just what to say, even if Zuko would die before admitting it.

Unfortunately, there was no going back now. Even if he truly wanted to (he still wasn't quite sure of that) he had no way of finding his uncle. He had no choice but to continue on his own and hope that eventually he would be able to sort things out for himself.

So he went on for what felt like hours. The sun beat down on him and his stomach rumbled with hunger, but he didn't stop.

He kept heading towards the Earth Kingdom Capital – Ba Sing Se. It was where his uncle mentioned he was going, and Zuko couldn't think of anywhere else he could seek refuge. The city was huge and the Fire Nation had yet to seize it. He figured that he would be safe there. Surely it would be a good place for him to bide his time while he figured out his next move – whatever it was.

As he rode on, he began to daydream about what life in Ba Sing Se could possibly be like. Suffice to say, it was bleak. The images in his head were all the same. Dark shades of green, people acting like regular commoners, not doing much of anything besides working hard to get by with what little they had.

It didn't seem like a very appealing life. Then again, he had little choice and it wasn't exactly that much different from what he was already doing. At least in Ba Sing Se he would have some sort of safety from his home nation and the possibility of a roof over his head. He would have to find work, but he didn't mind too much. At the very least it would serve as a distraction from his constant thoughts about his home and the Avatar.

Unfortunately for Prince Zuko, the universe just loved to throw irony at him. It figured that as just as soon as he would decide to forget about the Avatar for the time being, a reminder would show up in his path. Quite literally, in fact.

When he looked upwards, he saw the waterbender walking towards him. He was just feet away from her. Sighing heavily, he looked back down. Where were the rest of them? Why wasn't she on the bison? Was this some sort of trap for him? Maybe if he ignored her and trotted by without a word he wouldn't have to deal with her...

It was a good plan until he found himself on the ground, soaked.

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><p>Katara glared at Zuko as she kept her hands outstretched, ready to strike again. Just what did he think he was doing? There was no way she was going to let him get the better of her! His disguise may have fooled her at first, but as soon as she saw that mark on his face she knew exactly who she was dealing with. Her quick reflexes had allowed her to have the first strike, knocking him off of his ostrich horse rather effortlessly.<p>

Now she had managed to take him down rather easily. Katara couldn't help but feel a little more than pleased with herself. After all, how many times was it that he'd managed to show up and throw a wrench into their plans? She looked down at him smugly. Seeing him at her mercy eased her troubles ever so slightly. She hadn't managed to fend off the other soldiers from earlier, but if she could keep Zuko away from Aang, at least that would be of some help.

But the question remained, how had he managed to find her in the first place? Katara found herself wondering, but quickly chastised herself. Zuko always managed to find them, no matter where they were. His ability to show up at the most inconvenient times was precisely what she despised the most about him! He was definitely last on the list of people she wanted to run into.

"How did you find me?" she asked angrily, still glaring at him.

"Believe it or not, I wasn't looking for you," he said, not making any move to get up from the ground. Instead he just wiped the droplets of water off his forehead.

"I don't believe it," she said bitterly. How could she? All Zuko had ever done was stalk them and pursue Aang. It was as if Aang was just a trophy to him. Something to be taken back to the Fire Nation as a prize worthy of praise. It made her seethe with rage every time she thought about it. Aang wasn't an obstacle in the way – he was the world's only hope for peace and balance! With Zuko's obvious distorted way of thinking, how could she even think about trusting him just a little bit?

He looked up at her, and Katara noticed something in his eyes she'd never seen before. That could have been because she'd never actually taken the time to _look_, but still. The aura of anger and rage he usually carried around with him was less than she'd ever seen in him. Replacing it was... sadness? Katara couldn't really tell. But something seemed off about him. Maybe it was just the fact that he wasn't fighting back. At all. He just sat there, watching her and waiting for her next move.

He narrowed his eyes and averted his gaze from hers. "Well, it's the truth."

She relaxed a little, but was careful to not make it apparent. She didn't want to let her guard down. "Really? So what exactly were you doing out here then? Going for a nice leisurely stroll?" she spat.

"No," he replied simply, standing up. Katara watched him do this and held her rigid stance, ready if he decided to make any sudden moves.

He didn't. It surprised her that he just got right back onto his ostrich horse without doing or saying anything else to her. It surprised her so much that she let her arms fall to her sides as she watched him wordlessly begin to trot away.

"So then... what are you doing?" She found herself calling out to him before she was able to stop. Her curiosity always seemed to get the better of her. Aang was far worse than she was, but without him around to get into mischief, Katara found herself reverting to her old ways. After all, it had been her and Aang's combined effort in searching around the Fire Nation ship back at her tribe that had led Zuko to them in the first place...

"Travelling." His one word answers were beginning to annoy her. She walked silently beside him for a moment. She didn't particularly want to spend time with him... but she didn't particularly want to go back to being alone in the woods either. As strange as it was, Zuko was at least someone familiar.

"Yeah, me too," she said sadly, not wanting to think about what might have happened Sokka and Aang. She glanced up at Zuko, but he kept his eyes placed firmly forward. Katara sighed. "Where's the rest of your crew?" she tried, wondering why he was out on his own. He always seemed to have his ship full of soldiers close by.

Instead of offering up the one word answers that had bothered Katara so much just moments ago, he just looked down at her briefly. It would seem as though he wasn't about to offer her any information as to why he was alone in the forest, sporting Earth Kingdom clothes and an ostrich horse.

She rolled her eyes, wondering why she'd even bothered. Travelling on her own had to be better than being frustrated by _him_.

"Fine," she said bitterly, turning on her heels to begin walking in the opposite direction. "I'll just go to Be Sing Se on my own," she muttered.

"You're going the wrong way."

Katara snapped her head back to look at him. He had stopped in his tracks, and had his head turned. His expression hadn't changed, he was still wearing the same unfazed look he had earlier. Still... was he actually offering her advice?

"What?"

"Ba Sing Se is that way," he said, pointing in front of him. "You're walking the wrong way."

She studied him for a second. It was hard to believe that he was actually trying to help. The more and more Katara thought about it, the more she realized how different Zuko seemed from the last time she'd seen him. Something was clearly up with him. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to find out exactly what had happened to cause this change, but was unable to stop herself from being just a little curious.

"Is that where you're going?" she asked cautiously.

Zuko turned to face the apparent correct direction of Ba Sing Se. "Yes."

She found herself walking a few steps behind the ostrich horse that carried the boy she despised so much. What harm could come from simply following Zuko?

Actually, it was probably best not to ask that question.

But he did seem to know where he was going, and if he could unknowingly lead her to Sokka and Aang, then that was all the better. She could get on the right path, make her way into Ba Sing Se and not have to worry about him after that! He seemed content to be on his own anyway. He probably wouldn't mind her leaving him behind once she got where she needed to be.

Katara just hoped she wouldn't have to deal with too many more one word answers along the way.


End file.
